That Used to Be Us
How America Fell Behind in the World It Invented and How We Can Come Back
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3.7 • 363 Ratings
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- $12.99
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
America is in trouble. We face four major challenges on which our future depends, and we are failing to meet them—and if we delay any longer, soon it will be too late for us to pass along the American dream to future generations.
In That Used to Be Us, Thomas L. Friedman, one of our most influential columnists, and Michael Mandelbaum, one of our leading foreign policy thinkers, offer both a wake-up call and a call to collective action. They analyze the four challenges we face—globalization, the revolution in information technology, the nation's chronic deficits, and our pattern of excessive energy consumption—and spell out what we need to do now to sustain the American dream and preserve American power in the world. They explain how the end of the Cold War blinded the nation to the need to address these issues seriously, and how China's educational successes, industrial might, and technological prowess remind us of the ways in which "that used to be us." They explain how the paralysis of our political system and the erosion of key American values have made it impossible for us to carry out the policies the country urgently needs.
And yet Friedman and Mandelbaum believe that the recovery of American greatness is within reach. They show how America's history, when properly understood, offers a five-part formula for prosperity that will enable us to cope successfully with the challenges we face. They offer vivid profiles of individuals who have not lost sight of the American habits of bold thought and dramatic action. They propose a clear way out of the trap into which the country has fallen, a way that includes the rediscovery of some of our most vital traditions and the creation of a new thirdparty movement to galvanize the country.
That Used to Be Us is both a searching exploration of the American condition today and a rousing manifesto for American renewal.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Friedman and Mandelbaum provide a strong and powerful assessment of the serious political, technological, and economic challenges facing the United States, insight into how the U.S. ended up mired in these predicaments, and some "radical centrist" ideas on how to resolve the nation's current issues. Narrator Jason Culp delivers a nuanced performance in this audio production. His tone communicates the authors' sincerity, but avoids condescension and didacticism. And Culp's ability to emphasize key phrases and utilize pregnant pauses helps clarify the book's many complex ideas and abstruse concepts. Additionally, both authors narrate the book's introduction, switching back and forth in a reading that, while it pales in comparison to Culp's performance, proves to be pleasant rather than disjointed. A Farrar, Straus and Giroux hardcover.
Customer Reviews
Good ideas, mediocre writing
I doubt the ideas and the articulations are interesting and thought provoking, but there are many repetitions instead of more elaborations and examples. Hastily-put together, it seems. I enjoyed reading it nonetheless.
That Used To Be Us
This book is an emotional roller coaster ride, providing many incites and possible solutions for the United States. I am left with a feeling of hopefulness after reading the book. I bought a copy for my school teacher son. The more people that read the book the greater the chance of getting our country back to the cutting edge of who we used to be.
That Used to Be Us
If you want answers to America's current problems it is all in this book.
An analysis of our current situation can be traced to our current political parties inability to move beyond petty bickering.
The political center must becoming radical.
Enter a third party candidate to shock the political system. I vote for Tom Friedman.